Official: U.S. lacking in dealing with elder abuse

Official calls Texas a leader in its actions

When it comes to elder abuse and the needs of the nation’s older citizens, the response at the national level has been sorely lacking, and for far too long.

So said Kathy Greenlee, assistant secretary for aging in the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, who addressed 700 attendees at the annual state Adult Protective Services Conference on Wednesday in San Antonio.

Appointed by President Barack Obama in 2009, Greenlee said she’s sought to increase the amount of attention paid at the federal level to the plight of elderly Americans, too many of whom are abused each year by those who are supposed to love them.

“We’ve never built a system at the top for adult protective services,” Greenlee told the overwhelmingly female audience of APS caseworkers, investigators and others. “At the national level, there really isn’t an understanding of what’s missing.”

She began a host of efforts two years ago to address this dearth, such as creating a data collection system on elder abuse and other issues, working with partners such as the U.S. Justice Department. The partners began looking at ways to prevent and respond to elder abuse — an effort that states historically have had to manage on their own, Greenlee said.

In this regard, adult protective services in two states — Texas and California — have led the nation in terms of best practices in dealing with the needs of the elderly, she said.

Her office received $6 million in funding for programs to support seniors, including two programs in Texas. One of those places trained workers in Well-Med health clinics in five cities, including San Antonio, to screen for elder abuse. The other, in Houston, works to increase medication compliance among the elderly and to decrease social isolation, among other goals.

According to the National Adult Protective Services Association:

One in nine seniors will be abused, neglected or exploited in some way each year; 1 in 20 will suffer some financial mistreatment. More than 1,100 elderly or disabled Texans were confirmed victims of financial exploitation last year.

Elder abuse is vastly under-reported, with only one in 44 cases of financial abuse ever reported.

Seniors who are abused are three times more likely to die and four times more likely to go into a nursing home.

Most elder abuse perpetrators, 90 percent, are family members or trusted others.

mstoeltje@express-news.net

More Information

Warning signs of financial exploitation include:

Sudden changes in bank accounts or banking practices and unexplained or unexpected withdrawal of large sums of money

Adding names to someone's bank signature card

Unfamiliar people accompanying bank customers to withdraw large sums

Unauthorized withdrawal of funds using ATM cards or sudden transfers of assets

Sudden changes in financial documents

Unpaid bills despite having enough money

Signs of physical abuse or neglect of the elderly include:

An injury that has not been cared for properly

Injury that is inconsistent with explanation for its cause

Pain from touching

Cuts, puncture wounds, burns, bruises, welts

Dehydration or malnutrition without illness-related cause

Poor coloration; sunken eyes or cheeks

Soiled clothing or bed

If you suspect an elderly person is being financially exploited, physically abused or neglected, call (800) 252-5400 or report it online atTxAbuseHotline.org.